Wednesday, January 30, 2013

What do you do with left over pie crust? Make taco pie of course! I haven't had this since I was a kid. It was good, easy and something a little different so I thought I'd share my nostalgic recipe. ﻿ ﻿﻿

Thursday, January 24, 2013

This week has been cold. February cold. And we still have February to bear. As Tom Robbins said, "If February is the color of lard on rye, its aroma is that of wet wool trousers.".

I supremely dislike February so it's high time to transport myself. Since it will not be physically I will have to suffice with remembering a great vacation we took that has been on my mind lately.

About to enter Grand Teton National Park

IT WAS WARM in September 2009 and Mountain Man, Spike and I drove from Colorado Springs to Glacier National Park. We slept in the back of a minivan (down by the river) at national parks most nights. We had campfires. Ate from cans. The best part was seeing all of those great parks and that part of the USA. Yellowstone is magical with its history & beauty. You can imagine all of the people who stayed at the old hotels and ate in the those grand dining rooms. So many artists photographing and painting those iconic images we get to call ours.

22 miles SE of Old Faithful

We had a run in with a buffalo and saw a bear run across the road. Cattle road blocked us. Windmills filled the horizon sometimes. The night sky was so clear we saw the Milky Way as close as if we could reach up and grab it. We drove through Indian Reservations. Raced to get the last available campsite more than once. Found the place we'd like to buy a vacation home. Thought about writing a Spike adventure book. Such a great trip. Did I mention it was warm? I hope you are thinking warm thoughts to get you through too.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Why must conversions always come so late? Why do people always apologize to corpses? David Brine (science-fiction writer)

This weekend reminded me how I got over a huge hump a few years ago when I learned to say I'm sorry. An ex, who shall remain nameless, used to complain to me, "Why don't you apologize? You never say you're sorry, you could do that once in a while".
It's something I very rarely did. Before him I never gave it much thought. I didn't grow up hearing it and I continued the tradition by holding on to my ego and pride as if my life depended upon it. I could not admit to being wrong even if I felt bad for whatever I did. I would get stuck in the mud.

His question was valid and began some thinking.
I have found that it is very freeing to apologize. It begins to untangle the guilt of an error. It shows someone you respect/love them enough to do something difficult and that you care. It usually gets things moving back in a positive direction. And it even begins the forgiveness to myself instead of harboring guilt for a mistake. It just feels good.

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Here are few other projects I have done around the house in the past few months. After much pinning about it I finally hung plates and I have new lamps coming. I used Invisible Plate Hangers. They are great.

I made these window treatments with an Ikea tablecloth I just loved the pattern. I used iron on hems and inexpensive rods. The mountain wall decals are from Bilk.

I wanted to show my beloved DWR Twilight Sofa protected with a duvet cover in the kids' room.The flags were made for a birthday party from paper I had. The needlepoint from the thrift store.

A quick update on a past blog Going Interior To Decorate. The curtains are up and the window cornices are made and installed. The dresser, sofa and rug are in. Let me tell you I looked for the perfect pillows for a long time! Still some finishing touches to go but wanted to share as promised. It is an oasis! For product info you can check out my Pinterest board Master Final.

BEFORE

AFTER Looking in from the french doors. The mirrors aren't hung because I think a
big old flat screen is going in instead.

Cement floors were stained by Mountain Man. The window treatments were made by me!

To begin anew also means reflecting on the past year, exhaling that it's over and kissing it good-bye. Rich keeps saying, "You made it!" But I haven't let myself feel the victory yet. I'm ready to let it go!

It's astonishing how well it turned out considering...
In 2012 we celebrated our 2nd consecutive New Year while pregnant. January 13 Stella fell and deeply cut her face just missing her eye. In February we celebrated her first 1st birthday and in March I went into preterm labor. Three. Months. Early.

Ignorance is a good thing sometimes. It saved me from knowing and freaking out about all of the possible complication a premature baby can have.

My first time holding Sam 3 days after he was born.

March 8th Sam was taken from my womb stabilized and sent to another hospital for more support. That was the hardest moment of the year. Maybe ever. All I can say is I always felt that everything would be o.k. from the first day through Sam's two months in the NICU. So many things could have gone wrong but he was a perfect patient. He came home in May. In June he had hernia surgery and things have been pretty normal ever since.

The rest of 2012 is a blur. We really have the home improvements moving forward and NICU bills under control. In the scheme of things we have our health and today and that is everything. HELLO 2013!